


Teacher's Pet

by doridoripawaa



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: College AU, LGBT, M/M, Pride, mlm, puppy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-06-29
Packaged: 2021-03-04 03:13:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,757
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24986614
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/doridoripawaa/pseuds/doridoripawaa
Summary: Maybe Byleth and Dimitri both found what they were looking for.
Relationships: Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd/My Unit | Byleth
Comments: 4
Kudos: 36





	Teacher's Pet

**Author's Note:**

> HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY AMAZING FRIEND AND GUARDIAN ANGEL RAY!!!!!!!!!!!  
> I LOVE YOU!!!!!!!!!
> 
> This was supposed to be fluffy, but my brain really said angst.

Byleth was thoroughly convinced that nothing quite compared to the feeling he felt upon finding something he had been searching for.

The rush of satisfaction, elation, and relief that rose in a wave and crashed over him, causing his entire body to tingle, simply could not be matched by any other sensation. After searching for hours for his lost dog, the teaching assistant suddenly encountered pitiful, pleading eyes; messy, leaf-strewn hair; gentle whimpering; and an overall sad, lonely demeanor.

Alongside this pathetic creature, he also spotted Rex.

The blue-haired man's gut reaction was to call out to his canine companion, but a voice in the back of his mind told him to wait a moment before disturbing the scene. _"Look closely at him!"_ this nagging voice whispered.

Byleth narrowed his eyes and focused in on the young man who sat gently running his long, slender fingers through Rex's fur. The beagle thumped his tail excitedly against the ground with each stroke. Rex did not seem to be harmed or alarmed, so Byleth figured he could spare a moment to examine the poor creature a little more closely. Dirt, twigs, and leaves had intertwined into his stringy blond hair. His blue track jacket bore the university's emblem, so he must have been a student here. However, as the boy bent over so that his bangs partially obscured his face, Byleth could not determine his identity. 'Maybe he isn't even one of my students,' he thought. Why did the sight make his chest ache, then? Ever since he had begun his job at Garreg Mach University, the once-stoic man had begun to grow more... sympathetic? Cognizant? Emotionally intelligent? Was it because college students were so hormonal, or was the change deep inside Byleth himself? Regardless, seeing the miserable look in this young man's eyes and the low, melancholic humming that he emitted as he gently, rhythmically petted the happy little beagle in front of him, Byleth could not help but feel a gnawing deep within the pit of his stomach. He watched as the blond suddenly curled his fingers inward, and Byleth tensed, preparing to lunge out from his hiding place and defend his dog. However, the boy simply began to scratch behind Rex's ears, and in response, Rex began to thump his tail with even more vivacity than before.

Was that boy now _smiling?_

"Rex!" Byleth blurted out at last, emerging from behind the sturdy oak trees that blockaded the small little field from plain sight. Immediately upon hearing his owner's voice, Rex jumped up and whirled around, effectively smacking the boy in the hand with his tail in his excitement. "I finally found you," Byleth went on, and he extended his arms towards his puppy. Rex yipped and bounded over to him, barking gleefully over their reunion. "There, there," Byleth cooed, and he lowered himself onto his knees so that Rex could leap up and lather his face with kisses. "Oh. Your breath is awful," he commented casually, reaching out to gently push his dog's reeking snout away from his face.

As if sensing that he did not belong in this joyous scene before him, the young blond man slowly began to rise to his feet. However, he cast a quick glance at the man who had come to retrieve his dog, and the student's eyes grew wide in surprise as he whispered, "Mr. Eisner?"

Byleth looked up curiously upon hearing his name, and his jaw nearly dropped when he recognized those crystal blue eyes. "Dimitri?"

The star student of the fencing team? The stud of the baseball team? The dedicated, hard-working political science major who still managed to be one of the top students in Byleth's calculus section?

 _"How interesting!"_ the voice in the back of his mind murmured. " _He's always seemed a little troubled, but to think that this depressed fellow could be Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd!"_

"I... I did not know that this was your dog, Mr. Eisner," Dimitri stammered. He then paused to clear his throat and straighten up to his full height, with proper posture befitting one of the most popular young men at the university. "Otherwise, I would have returned him to you at once. My apologies."

"Why are you apologizing?" Byleth asked rather bluntly. "How were you supposed to know?"

Dimitri opened his mouth to reply, but no sound came out. Instead he just wiped some dirt off of his jacket, trying to smooth out his appearance.

"You are free to pet Rex, Dimitri," Byleth went on. "Come on down here. Actually, I have a better idea. Come back to my dorm and we can have some tea."

"I-I could never impose on you, Professor," Dimitri said hastily, waving his hands in front of his face.

Byleth frowned and rose to his feet, cradling his chunky beagle within his arms. "I'm not a Professor, so you really shouldn't call me that," he pointed out. "And I won't force you, of course. You're an adult. I'd just appreciate the chance to talk to you, if your schedule allows."

Why was he being so adamant about seeing Dimitri now? Was it the way he gently played with Rex? Was it the sad look in his eyes as he did so? Was it the aura of misery that still clung to him, even as he tried to shake out his hair and dust off his clothes?

_"If you don't talk to him now, you'll never get the chance again! Be bold!"_

Byleth's earlier satisfaction from finding Rex was now giving way to darker, stormier, more turbulent emotions. Confusion? Worry? And what were these pangs that vibrated deep within his stomach? Or was it his chest? He needed answers, and the sooner he obtained them, the better. How could he hope to convince the busy Blaiddyd boy to join him?

"I can, uh, also bring out cheese and fruit?"

* * *

"Cheese" seemed to be the magic word for Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd.

That seemed to be the only string that was tying him to this rather uncomfortable tea time. That and Rex, who lied underneath the table for both young men to pet intermittently.

Every time Byleth asked a question, Dimitri answered politely, but he gave no elaboration. He just sat there, sipped his tea, and munched on cheese cubes. "What are your classes this semester? How is baseball training going? Have you ever owned a dog?"

One word. One sentence if he was lucky.

"Thank you for your time, Mr. Eisner," Dimitri said at last, after what must have been half an hour of their awkward, stilted attempts at conversation. He pushed back his chair and slowly rose to his feet, placing his teacup down gently. 

_"Not yet!"_ Byleth's subconscious shrieked. _"I haven't learned anything yet!"_ Why did Dimitri look so sad? Why did he look as if he hadn't properly slept in days? Why did he look so traumatized? Why was Rex able to calm him down? Why did Byleth need answers to these questions, anyway? Was it just his moral obligations as a teacher, or did his motivations run deeper?

"I would love the opportunity to do this again some time."

Hope. Hope sparked within Byleth's chest. He jumped up to his feet, nearly knocking the table over in the process. "I, um, let me get the door for you," he offered, hoping that his flimsy excuse would be enough for Dimitri to avoid questioning his sudden enthusiasm. "Drop by whenever you like. I'll be here with tea and snacks."

A low howl resounded from underneath the table, and now Byleth could tell with absolute certainty that Dimitri was smiling.

"Rex will be here too, of course."

* * *

Today marked the fourth time this month that Dimitri had joined Byleth for tea and cheese in Byleth's quarters. The teaching assistant was still perplexed by the fact that Dimitri had this much spare time, but honestly, he genuinely enjoyed these brief respites with the star student; he was not about to question the goddess about how he was so fortunate to have these little moments.

"I still cannot believe that you live in a dorm," Dimitri murmured as he dropped his backpack off inside Byleth's door. The pitter patter of paws against tile began to echo throughout the room as Rex came speeding up to the front door, barking excitedly. "Hey buddy," Dimitri laughed as he bent down to scratch the beagle behind the ears. "Did you miss me?"

"Yes," Byleth answered at once. Dimitri's face suddenly flushed a pale red, and Byleth tilted his head in confusion. "Rex seems to miss you a lot," he went on, explaining. "Whenever I pull out my tea cup, even if I'm the only one having tea, he runs up to the door and sits there whining." Byleth smiled softly, and he walked over to run his hand down his dog's back. "Are you hot, by the way? Your face is red." That simple observation made Dimitri's face turn an even deeper shade of crimson. "I'll turn down the air conditioning," Byleth offered, and Dimitri just nodded and rubbed the back of his neck in response. How bizarre; the weather was only getting _cooler_ as the leaves began to change color and fall to the earth. "Chamomile, right?"

"Yes, sir." Dimitri hesitated for a moment, staying on the ground to pet Rex, but then he slowly rose to his feet. "Mr. Eisner," he began as he slid into his familiar wooden chair. Byleth had made the effort to fetch small cushions after Dimitri offered to come again, hoping to make their little tea time corner more hospitable and welcoming. _Their_ corner? Byleth shook his head rapidly to clear his mind and focus on Dimitri. After all, for the blond to instigate conversation was rather... unusual. "Are you close with your father?"

Byleth walked over to the table with a plate of sliced cheeses. "Yes," he replied casually. "Jeralt and I are pretty close. I never knew my mother, after all."

Dimitri simply nodded as he reached out for a small block of cheddar and a more rectangular sliver of colby jack. "It amuses me that you call your father Jeralt," he mused, and he chuckled softly. "Then again, I suppose Coach Jeralt does always insist we call him by his first name."

Byleth's eyes grew wide as the weight of Dimitri's sentence hit him like a baseball to the face. His father coached the baseball team! How could he have forgotten something so essential? All of this time, he could have asked his father about Dimitri's demeanor at practice, whether his performance had experienced any changes lately, whether he seemed more tired than usual, how well he was communicating and socializing with the other players... He could have asked about all of the issues that were swarming through Byleth's mind, keeping him up night after night.

"Mr. Eisner, do you enjoy being a teaching assistant?"

Byleth grabbed a slice of cheddar for himself and thought carefully while he chewed. "I don't dislike it," he responded. "I suppose I like learning."

"Isn't that what the students are supposed to say?" Dimitri teased gently.

Byleth shrugged. "I guess so," he conceded, and the corners of his mouth turned upwards into a smile. "I learn from my students every day, though. Not about class, but about life. You all have such diverse life experiences that I can learn a lot of lessons from you." He slid into his chair and rested his chin on his hands. "I've learned about happiness, excitement, pride, arrogance, amusement...." He began to count off on his fingers with every new emotion he named.

"What about desperation? Grief? Sorrow?" Dimitri asked, his voice barely above a whisper. "What about trauma? Terror? Anxiety? Depression?"

Byleth tilted his head to the side. "Well, most of my students don't bring those emotions to class," he commented as calmly as possible. What was Dimitri trying to suggest?

"What about at tea time?"

A sharp whistle from the kitchen saved Byleth from needing to answer right away. He leaped to his feet and scurried over to the singing kettle. Hopefully, hopefully, when he returned with a steaming hot teapot full of Dimitri's favorite tea, the boy would smile again like he did in class. Like he did on the field. Like he did when he was petting Rex.

Like he did in Byleth's dreams.

Dimitri graciously accepted the teapot from his teacher's hands and steadily poured the two of them a cup of tea. "I want to say I'm enjoying my life," Dimitri went on, picking up the conversation where it had left off. "Sometimes, though, I wonder whether I'm doing what makes me happy."

"You look happy when you're in class, sparring, or out with Sylvain and Felix on the field," Byleth commented. _"But on that day when you were petting Rex alone in the field, you looked absolutely miserable."_ That thought just refused to leave from the corners of his mind.

Dimitri picked up a spoon and began to swirl it around inside his tea, casting ripples throughout its surface, distorting his reflection. "My father was a politician," he murmured. "He was governor, actually." He picked up a sugar cube and dropped it inside his tea, and his eyes glossed over as he watched the cube dissolve and the fine white particles diffuse throughout the liquid. "He was also the star of a minor league baseball team in his youth. He was an amazing role model to me. I wanted to be just like him.

"Then when I watched him die in front of my very eyes, I felt the duty to be just like him."

If only Byleth had prepared a second pot of tea to save him from this steep silence. A silence that seemed to stretch on for hours, days, weeks, years. How was he supposed to respond to this information?

Dimitri picked up another slice of colby jack, rubbing his fingers over its marbled colors. "I lived to tell the tale, but my father and stepmother were not so fortunate. I feel the drive to do my best because I hear their voices urging me onward. Telling me to become a leader. A role model." He began to nibble at the edges of the cheese. "But I would love nothing more than to spend hours on end laying in the field, petting the stray cats and dogs on campus, and just... being. Not being Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd, son of Governor Lambert Blaiddyd. Just being. But ghosts won't let you rest while they still have lingering regrets, now will they?" He raised his teacup to his lips and mumbled, "What a delightful smell."

Byleth gently placed his teacup onto its saucer. He waited for Dimitri to place his teacup down, too, before lunging out across the table and clamping his hands down onto Dimitri's. "I don't know what you're going through," he murmured.

"I hope you never do," Dimitri replied coolly.

"But I do know that you're more than what your family expects you to be. You are a kind, chivalrous, courteous, friendly, athletic, bright, talented young man." He squeezed Dimitri's hands tighter. "And I will always be here when you need me. When you need to be yourself. When you need to forget the world and just pet a dog."

Both of them glanced down at Rex, who was happily lapping up a piece of cheese that had fallen to the ground. He looked up and whimpered at them.

The pair of them began to laugh, and Dimitri's eyes lit up with comfort and delight as he reached over and ran his fingers through Rex's fur. Upon closer inspection, Byleth could see that scarred criss-crossed his porcelain skin, carrying secrets that he could probably never imagine in his wildest dreams.

"I've learned a lot today. Thank you." Byleth reached out and ruffled Dimitri's messy blond locks. With his hair and his face and his wet eyes, Dimitri almost looked like a puppy himself. "By the way. Do you know what the most important feeling I learned is?" changing the topic of conversation. "The feeling of--"

"Love?" Dimitri blurted out, his face growing as red as a tomato again. "Mr. Eisner, are you in love?"

"--finding what you've been looking for, after searching for so long. You wouldn't _believe_ how many lost items I've found in my classroom that I've needed to return to my students."

Was that relief in Dimitri's eyes, or was it disappointment?

_"How mysterious."_


End file.
